His tee shot at TPC Twin Cities’ 423-yard par 4 landed in the rough, and he pulled his second shot into a hazard before salvaging a bogey with a 45-foot putt.

Pernice wasn’t even thinking about making the putt. He just wanted to get it close, take the double bogey and move on. But he made it, right down the center.

He followed with a birdie on 15 on the way to a second-round 65 to put him 13 under for the tournament and give him a two-stroke lead heading into Sunday’s final round of the 3M Championship. Only Tom Kite is within two strokes of Pernice.

“It was a very good day,” Pernice said. “I’m very pleased with that. Just have to continue on and give yourself as many chances as you can.”

The bogey on No. 14 was the only blemish on Pernice’s scorecard. He birdied four of the first six holes thanks to strong play with his lob wedge, sticking two of those approaches within four feet of the pin. He drained a pair of 20-foot putts on the other two holes in that span.

“The greens are in miraculous condition,” Pernice said. “That got me off to a great start early, and I birdied four in a row.”

In a tournament in which 59 players are under par, Pernice jumped out to a big lead.

Mark Wiebe opened the round atop the leader board, but a whirlwind week finally caught up to the Senior British Open champion, and he was just 1 under on the day. Playing partners Kenny Perry (1 under) and Corey Pavin (3 under) did little to build on their great first rounds.

Only Kirk Triplett had a better day than Pernice.

Triplett eagled the seventh, a driveable par 4, and birdied seven other holes on his way to an 8-under 64, a big improvement from his 71 in the first round Friday.

“Well, I putted a lot less today,” Triplett said. “I made a few long putts on the back nine and just kept it going throughout.”

Pernice, Kite and Don Blake will tee off at 12:15 p.m. Sunday, a threesome likely filled with nerves heading into the final round.

“I hope so,” Kite said. “That is the worst part of not playing well, is you don’t get nervous. You’re out there putzing around. You have no chance to win, and there’s nothing to get excited about. I’m looking forward to getting nervous tomorrow. I’m anxious for that because it means you’re doing something.”

This is Pernice’s first full year on the Champions Tour after bouncing between it and the PGA Tour last year. This year, he wanted to fully commit himself to the Champions Tour. He’s making his first appearance in the 3M Championship.

This isn’t his first time in contention at a tournament this year, but he’s had trouble closing them out.

Pernice has finished in the top three five times in the 14 tournaments he’s entered this year, but he’s still missing a 2013 trophy.

“Obviously it’s all about trying to win,” he said. “I’ve been playing better and putting myself in position a lot times.”

Chad Graff joined the Pioneer Press in April of 2013 -- long enough to cover three straight Wild playoff exits at the hands of the Blackhawks -- after working for the Philadelphia Inquirer and Boston Globe. He's lived in California and Texas, but most recently spent a decade in New Hampshire. He watched New England fans celebrate seven championships in his time there, yet somehow his only sports allegiance lies with Nebraska football.

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